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Dear Applicant

RE: Assistant Operations Manager Post Ref: 1403

Thank you for your interest in the above post. Please find enclosed in this application pack the following documents:

  • Application Form and Guidance Notes
  • Job Description
  • Person Specification

Application Form:

The application form plays a key part in our selection process. We use the information you provide to shortlist for interview.

You are urged to ensure that all the information contained in your application is relevant and that you demonstrate how you meet the criteria on the person specification. Please use the person specification for guidance when filling in the application form.

References: If successful at interview, Ipswich Borough Council will seek to obtain two employment references. Wherever possible the name of your first referee must be from current employment/education and the second from either current or former employment/education. If you cannot provide an “employment” reference please contact the HR Team at Ipswich Borough Council for further assistance.

For your information, the salary for this post is £31,410 - £33,392 per annum

The closing date is 5pm on 17th September 2014. Please send your completed application form to Human Resources, 2nd Floor – West, Grafton House, 15-17 Russell Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 2DE or email it to .

If you have any recruitment queries, please do not hesitate to contact us on 01473 432766. Please leave your name, number and brief details of your question and a member of the recruitment team will call you back.

Yours faithfully,

Recruitment Team

Ipswich Borough Council

Job Description: L78

Assistant Operations Manager – Democratic Services

Main Purpose of Job

To assist with the overall management of the Democratic Services teamreporting to the Operations Manager for Community Engagement and Democratic Services and to provide day to day supervision of the democratic services team in relation to:

  • Formal Committees and working groups
  • Scrutiny function
  • Member support and development
  • Electoral services including Individual Voter Registration and civic participation
  • Information compliance/FoI
  • Business and Systems support

Main Duties

  1. To assist the Operations Manager in co-ordinating implementing and reviewing the annual Operational Plan for the democratic Services area, having regard to the Council’s risk management procedures.
  1. To supervise the democratic services team in accordance with Human Resources policies and procedures and management competencies including a positive duty to promote diversity and equal opportunities.
  1. To assist with managing democratic service areas budget/s including monitoring and reporting and the preparation of estimates as required by the Head of Service and in accordance with the Council’s financial procedures.
  1. To coordinate and promote new and innovative opportunities to develop the democratic services for the future, including alternative methods of service delivery and partnership working.
  1. Assist with the development and implementation of corporate projects and policies in relation to democratic services role.
  1. To be responsible for supervising and co-ordinating all aspect of a comprehensive democratic support service to the Corporate Services Area as a whole including
  • Formal Decision making procedures
  • Councillor Support , training and development
  • Freedom of information compliance
  • Maintaining the Members’Register of Interests
  • Provision of Business support to the Legal and Democratic services areas
  • Performance management and data processing
  • Document management including filing and administration
  • Managing and monitoring use of service area computer systems including organising training and development.
  1. To be responsible for managing the Continuous Professional Development (CPD) requirements of the post holder and all business and democratic support team members to ensure that the team members are aware of new developments, local and national issues, case law and relevant legislation including the maintaining comprehensive CPD records for all staff.

Special responsibilities

At times of elections to assist the Returning Officer with his duties.

/ Ipswich Borough Council
Person Specification
Assistant Operations Manager – Democratic Services
ATTRIBUTES / ESSENTIAL / DESIRABLE
Qualifications / Degree level education or proven equivalent level of technical and organisational knowledge in own specific field.
Membership of a relevant professional body eg AEA and /or ADSO / Previous people management experience
Work related experience/ Job Related Skills / Previous experience within the environment/related field
Experience in establishing and developing strong working relationships with a range of people from relevant organisations including professional bodies
Proven success in establishing and maintaining a performance-orientated culture which delivers efficient and effective customer services. / Experience of management and control of budgets as required
Specialist knowledge / Detailed Knowledge of the local authority decision making and committee processes
Detailed knowledge of least one of the following areas:
Electoral practice and procedures
member development and scrutiny functions
information compliance
Ability to advice the chairs of committees on constitutional matters during meetings
Ability to engage, and motivate, others and communicate effectively with all parts of society
Self-starter - ability to work in the community with minimal supervision / management / Knowledge of external funding sources
Job Related Skills / Demonstrate ability to use technology to improve business effectiveness
Effective project management skills.
Ability to understand and promote the Council’s vision and priorities as it applies to the service area
Ability to identify and manage risks within the remit of the job
Personal skills / Demonstrate effective presentation and communication skills.
Ability to lead, motivate and develop staff/contacts in a performance focused culture.
Demonstrate a sound understanding of equal opportunities and diversity issues in relation to employment and service delivery.
Ability to work collaboratively building trust, mediating, conciliating, negotiating and delegating
Demonstrate a customer focused and responsive approach that improves service delivery.
Special working conditions / Will be required to work regularly in the evenings and weekends and outside of normal business hours during periods of Elections

Ipswich Borough Council

Community Engagement and Democratic Services

The Community Engagement and Democratic Services Team was created in October 2012 following a corporate management restructure to ensure a greater organisational role was given to supporting and developing communities and the role of councillors and community leaders generally.

The Community Engagement and Democratic Services Team delivers the council’s statutory obligations as they relate to elections, electoral registration, equalities and diversity, access to information and decision making in a way that promotes corporate values. The team also leads on developing positive relationships with all community leaders and groups and provides a framework for consultation that satisfies the future needs of the town in general.

Elections and Electoral Services

The Elections team is responsible for the council’s statutory obligations as they relate to elections and electoral registration. There are 48 councillors elected to Ipswich Borough Council, each for a term of 4 years each. The councillors are elected in thirds, which means that a third of councillors (one in each of the wards) retire per year for three out of the four years. Every fourth year there is a break from Borough elections and elections are held for Suffolk County Councillors instead. Ipswich Borough Council is also responsible for the administration of UK parliamentary general elections, European parliamentary elections and national and local referendums.

Electoral Registration

The Elections team are also responsible for the electoral register. The Electoral Registration Officer has a duty to conduct an annual canvas in order to maintain an up to date registrar of electors and ensure that all individuals in a household who are eligible to vote are registered to do so.

This year the canvas will be delivered to households in October. This is later than normal to allow for preparation for individual registration which is scheduled to begin next year and will present many challenges to the team. At the conclusion of the canvas a revised version of the electoral register will be published on 17th February 2014. Individual registration will commence in July 2014 and will eventually give electors the ability to register on line.

Mayor’s Office

The Mayors Secretary, Town Sergeant and Deputy Town Sergeant are a small team responsible for the mayoralty at Ipswich Borough Council. The mayoralty is the most exalted position in the gift of a municipal corporation and those Councillors that are elected to this office are rightly proud of its traditions. The Mayor is still the official representative of the Crown in the Borough, secound only to the Lord Lieutenant of the Court.

The primary legal function of the Mayor is to act as Chairman and preside over the Council meetings of the Borough Council.

The Mayor also acts as Returning Officer in the parliamentary elections. The Mayor is appointed at the Annual Council meeting which is usually held in May and his/her term of office is for the municipal year.

The Mayoralty is also the primary part of the civic heritage for Ipswich and plays an increasing part in the civic, commercial and community life of the town. The average number of engagements in recent years has been between 450-650 engagements a year.

Committee and Councillor Services

The Committee and Councillor Service’s team provide an efficient and effective committee services function and an advisory liaison and support service to councillors, officers and the general public.

The Committee and Councillor Services team support up to approx. 150 committees, area committees, sub groups , working groups panels and hearings each year during the daytime and evening including formulating agendas , co-ordinating reports and preparing meetings in compliance with the Council’s constitution and other procedural legislative requirements. The Committee and Councillor Services team also provides a confidential and comprehensive information and advisory and research service for Councillors liaising on their behalf with Council departments, MP’s Government Departments and external organisations.

Community Engagement and Equalities

The Community Engagement and Equalities team leads on managing the delivery of the area committees and their objectives, including working in partnership to implement the actions to meet the needs of the area.

The team is also responsible for the Council’s community grants process as a strategic framework to support the activities of Area Committees, Corporate Services and external partner activities and to identify other social funding opportunities for raising funding externally.

The State of Ipswich is an effective process for gathering community data and information (including social media and census data) The information provides advice and information to Area Committees, corporate policy development and the corporate business planning process, particularly in terms of provision of a community knowledge base.

The Community Engagement and Equalities team also leads on managing the Council’s Equality and Diversity Steering Group, the Council’s equality scheme and analysis system and the delivery of the Equality and Diversity Panel.